John Q. is a 2002 film starring Denzel Washington as the eponymous John Q. Archibald, a father whose son has just fallen victim to a terrible heart condition, which requires a transplant within a fairly short amount of time. Unfortunately for John, he soon finds out that due to his company's change in health coverage, his HMO will not allow compensation for the procedure. After expending all his other options in attempts to find financing for his son's operation, John makes a desperate choice by holding a hospital emergency room hostage until he is guaranteed an operation for his son. The film also stars Robert Duvall as Lt. Frank Grimes, Anne Heche as Rebecca Payne, and James Woods as Dr. Raymond Turner.

Bad Cop/Incompetent Cop: They sent a sniper to kill a guy talking with his family on the phone. While he had no hostage under weapon aim. Would it be to costly to give a non-fatal shot?! And they degrade to the point of telling him that his feelings for his son's death is meaningless.

Double Meaning Title: The title John Q. refers both to the main character's name and the term "John Q. Public", which is a symbol for the common man.

Fox News Liberal: It's not hard to tell what side of the health-care debate these writers came out on the side of.

Genre Savvy: While applying for a new job, John's friend is certain that he won't get it and that the interviewer will say either he's overqualified or they'll keep his application on file. When John does get interviewed, the interviewer says both.

Good Doc Bad Doc: The kidnapped doctors and nurses get into it during a debate over HMO coverage.

Groin Attack: The abused girlfriend gives this to her Jerk Ass boyfriend as the coup de grace of a major beat-down after she foils his attempt to subdue John Q.

Girlfriend: And this is for calling me a BITCH! (delivers heavy kick to nuts)

Hollywood Law: There is no way that John would only spend 2 years in prison for all his crimes in any reasonable court of law, whether or not his intentions were good. He's found not guilty of attempted murder and armed criminal action simply because there were no bullets in the gun, which would not hold up, because an empty gun is still considered a deadly weapon.

Hostage Situation: A rare case where the audience is actually rooting for the kidnapper. Hell, even the hostages were rooting for him (most of them, anyway).

Karma Houdini: The police guys who tried killing John unnecessarily because it was Election Year. Almost happened with Payne, but the guilt stab to her heart may or may have not been sufficient.

Leno Device: The denouement includes a montage of various late-night hosts, news anchors, and other assorted talking heads discussing the morality and ramifications of John's actions, as well as the American healthcare system.

Mistaken Identity: Towards the end of the film, one of the hostages pretends to be John by dressing in his coat and hat, in order to give John a chance to watch his son's operation

Protagonist-Centered Morality: The film has this in spades. The protagonist's son needs a heart transplant but can't afford it. Clearly, the big bad insurance agent is evil for not paying for his son's surgery. So John holds an entire hospital emergency room hostage, threatens to kill people if his son doesn't get a heart, and causes terror. However, there are only so many hearts available for transplant in the world. By blackmailing others to get his son a heart, he stole it from someone else, effectively killing that person. Then his son had his heart transplanted last minute by a group unprepared for the surgery, which lowered the odds of the transplant working. So John gave his son a lower chance of success of surviving the surgery than the person he stole the heart from. Not to mention the whole holding people hostage, disrupting an emergency room, which nearly resulted in one person dying, due to lack of proper treatment. Not only did John's stunt waste thousands of dollars, his 'victory' will encourage more people to blackmail the government for organs, which will further destabilize things, and most likely lead to more senseless deaths when the next blackmail attempt doesn't go as well as John's. Meanwhile, the insurance agent and doctor that are presented as the bad guys point out that they can't go around helping every little kid when there aren't enough hearts to go around. When you have to triage lives anyways, to triage lives based off financial affordability makes sense when the only other option is going bankrupt from never being paid for your services, and no one getting help.

On the other hand, the gun was never loaded, and some of the points made about the HMO's (that they pay doctors not to check in exchange for cash, that the most wealthy and powerful country in the world should be able to afford healthcare on a nationwide level, and that healthcare is in need of reform) are legitimate.

Several references were made to the film in Real Life during the media frenzy that surrounded 17-year-old Nataline Sarkisyan's liver transplant case in 2007. Despite her young age, Nataline was denied coverage by her insurance provider due to a lower than 50% five year survival rate and her family's inability to make a $75,000 down payment on the transplant. Unlike John's son, she didn't receive the transplant and died hours after her insurance company finally decided to pay for the procedure. And even then, it was only because of public pressure and intense media scrutiny.

Senseless Sacrifice: Averted by a hairsbreadth. John was within a second or two of committing suicide so his heart could be given to his son, until his wife informs him that they found another one to use (see Chekhov's Gunman above).

Poor Communication Kills: The reason for said near-Senseless Sacrifice. His wife was either so happy or so terrified that she didn't just say they found another heart, prompting John to think she was simply going crazy over his decision and shut off the walkie-talkie they were speaking to each other with.

Fridge Logic/Plot Hole:The sacrifice is averted when she runs the medical papers for the heart to the front door of the hospital... while her husband and the doctors are at the back in the operation room... huh.

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